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Sleuth of friendly bears become regular visitors at temple in central India

A group of bears have become regular attendees at a temple in central India for several years to eat the fruits and sweets distributed by the priest.

Video filmed on September 1 shows one of the sun bears sitting right in front of the temple door, while waiting for the priest to start handing out treats that are normally used as ritual sacraments.

The bears frequent the Mungai Mata temple in the Mahasamund district of Chhatisgarh, and arrive regularly from the hills, patiently waiting for the 'prasadam' to be given out.

The head priest of the temple, Tikeshwar Das Vaishnav, says: "A group of four bears stay at the top of the hill. A few years back one of the bears died in an accident, ever since the bears come down to seek the blessings of the God.

"It hasn't harmed anyone till this day. It simply comes to get the prasadam everyday without a miss. Nobody goes empty handed from the temple."

A wildlife photographer Satyaparakash Pandey who recorded the bears said: "The prasadam is mainly sweets other than the fruits and this can harm the health of the bears as the animals find it hard to process sugar."